Declaration Concerning the Late Tumults in Scotland, Floating text 33
The Supplication and humble Remonstrance of the Ministers of the Church of Scotland, presented to his Majesties High Commissioner and generall Assembly held at Glasgow in November, 1638.
May it please your Grace,
ANd you right Noble, Right Worshipfull, and you most Reverend brethren, conveened by his Majesties Proclamation in this venerable nationall Assembly, to consult upon the most convenient wayes, and to enact such Ecclesiasticall Lawes, as to your wisedomes seemes most expedient, for preserving of peace and truth in this Church, for which ends wee from the bottome of our hearts (as feeling members of the same) earnestly intreat him, who hath promised to be with his owne to the end of the world, by his spirit and grace, so to direct and assist your wisedomes, that by this long expected meeting, glory may redound to his ever glorious Name, and peace to this rent Church, which all the members thereof, with most earnest wishes, expect at your hands. For the present, we thought it our duty, as those whom it doth most clearly concerne (our great Shepheard having committed to our charge a part of that Flock which he hath redeemed with his precious bloud) to present unto you our just feares which arise from the sudden incroaching of the Laick (now called Ruling) Elders, in divers Presbyteries of this Kingdome, having chiefe hand in chusing of Commissioners there, lest they, with Commissioners thus elected, may bring upon the neck of the Ministery and Church here, the heavie yoake of over-ruling Elders in all times comming, to the no small hurt of us and our successors in the Gospel, except timely remedy be provided.
Our humble supplication therefore to your Grace, and Members of this present Assembly, is, that all these Commissioners thus chosen by the voyce of Laick Elders, and in whose Commissions they have had hand, may be removed, as men to whose voyces and judgements we cannot submit our selves in matter of Church government, for the just feares above exprest, they being justly suspect Judges not to be admitted, and their elections and Commissions void for reasons following: First, there is no Law in this Kingdome whereby Laick Elders have any voyce in chusing Commissioners to Generall Assemblies; the chusers therefore having no legall power to elect, those that are chosen by such, can have no place nor voyce in this Assembly. Secondly, albeit there have beene heretofore, and before Churches were fully planted, a custome that Laick-Elders did sit in Presbyteries, yet that custome hath beene these 35. yeeres by-past, universally (and above forty yeeres in most Presbyteries) interrupted; which prescription is sufficient to make voyd any such custome: so that it can be no sufficient warrant for them to sit and voyce in Presbyteries now, much lesse to intrude themselves (as they have done in many Presbyteries) contrarie to the minds and publicke protestation of the Ministerie. Thirdly, when Laick-Elders had place in Presbyteries, yet it was ordained that the voyces should not be equall in number, with the voyces of the Ministerie, as is to be seene in the booke of discipline Chapter. But in this election, their number were not onelyonly equall, but in most parts more, because out of every Parish there was a Laick-Elder, and so at least equall in number; and in election of these Commissioners, against whose election we except, there was put upon the list six in some places, and in others foure of the Ministers, who being removed, in their absence the choyce was made when the Laick-Elders by six or foure at the least exceeded the Ministers in number of voyces, yea in some Presbyteries the Laick-Elders were twice so many in number; so that these Commissioners are mainly chosen by the Laitie, and not by the Ministers, neither can wee acknowledge them for ours. Fourthly, these Laicke-Elders did of old onelyonly assist in Discipline, not medling with points of Doctrine (suffering the spirit of the Prophets to be subject to the Prophets, according to the Apostolicall rule;) but now they intrude themselves to sit and voice in the Presbyteries in matters of Doctrine, and have given Commission to those whom we except against, to voyce in this venerable Assembly, in Doctrine aswell as in matters of Discipline; which Commissions are null, as proceeding à non habente potestatem. For these and other most weighty causes, the election of such Commissioners, and their place in this Assembly being so dangerous to the Church, threaten the same with the most intolerable yoak of bondage to be laid upon the neck of the Presbyteries by Laick over-ruling-Elders, to the prejudice of the liberties of the said Presbyteries, and whole Discipline of this Church. We could not, out of conscience to God, our callings, and flocks, but make humble remonstrance of the same to your Grace and members of this grave Assembly: withall protesting, both in our own names, and in name of all the Ministerie and body of this Church that will adhere to this present supplication, that all sentences, conclusions, Canons, Statutes, and Ordinances, which shall be made in that Assembly wherein the foresaid Commissioners shall have determinative voyces, to be voyd, null, and of no effect to oblige us or any of us to the obedience of the same: But if this our just supplication be not admitted (which we hope and earnestly pray may be graciously accepted) then this our protestation may be of force against such Lawes and proceedings that may follow thereupon. Thus hoping for your charitable construction of this our necessarie duty in so eminent a danger of the Church, and humbly intreating these presents may be put upon Record, We rest.
ANd when the Protestation of the Presbyterie of Glasgow (which was a very strong one) begun to bee read, the Principall of the Colledge there desired the forbearance of it for a time; to which the Moderatour gladly yeelded: but Our Commissioner, who had delivered it in with his owne hands, pressed the reading of it out; which the Moderatour refused, alledging that any man might withdraw his owne Protestation, much more desire the forbearance of reading of it: to which Our Commissioner replyed, That the Protestation was subscribed not onelyonly by the hand of the Principall, but the major part of the Ministers of that Presbyterie, of whom many were Covenanters; that in all their names it was presented unto him, and therefore could not be re-called by any one of them, without the consent of the rest, praying him that it might bee read out to the end: but all in vaine; for no justice could be had from them, especially in a point which so much concerned their reputation: for they conceived it would bee a great blurre to their businesse, if a Protestation (made by that Presbyterie, in which was the seat of the Assembly) should bee knowne: and therefore they would neither reade it, nor did they deliver it backe againe, against all rules both of justice and equitie: After this contest the Assembly for that night was dismissed.
Our Commissioner wondring that the Principall of the Colledge should in publique desire the forbearance of publishing the Protestation of the Presbyterie of Glasgow in the Assembly, used meanes to know the reason of it, and found by the averment of persons of good credit upon their owne knowledge, that the night before late at ten of the clocke, the Lord Lowdan and the Moderatour, with divers others Covenanting-Ministers, had been with the Principall, and told him, that the Presbyteriall Protestation would make a great division amongst them; that unlesse he did withdraw it, hee must never looke to live quietly in Glasgow, nor any where in Scotland; that the Principall told them, it was presented to Our Commissioner, from whom it was not possible to recover it; that then by the same threatnings they adjured him to desire the forbearance of reading of it, if it should bee tendered to the Assembly; that after they were parted from him, his wife all in teares begged the like of him, affirming, that the Lord Lindsey had been with her, and sworne to her, that both he and his must be utterly ruined, if shee could not prevaile with him for re-calling that Protestation. This and many other passages heretofore mentioned, banishing quite out of Our Commissioners mind, and the minds of all Our well affected Councellours there present, all hopes, not onelyonly of just and faire, but even of formall proceedings in that Assembly, where not so much as the shew and countenance of justice was to be discerned, nor any thing but the power and obstinate wilfulnesse of the Covenanters, and the unanswerable nullities of this Assembly, in regard both of the members elected, and the manner of their election, being throughly considered, and the reasons of the Bishops Declinator presented to Our Commissioner being seriously weighed, by which they did not decline the judgement of a generall Assembly lawfully constituted, but onelyonly of this Assembly, which was to bee accounted far rather a Laicall convention, then Ecclesiasticall, all the members whereof had barred themselves from being Judges by their solemn oath of combination for the rooting out of that Kingdome both the Bishops persons and callings; to whose sentence We or Our Commissioner could not deliver them over without betraying all courses of justice, and denying to Our Bishops that protection which cannot bee denied by Us to any of Our subjects, viz. the benefit of the Lawes of that Our Church and Kingdome: And besides, Our Commissioner having certaine and unquestionable intelligence of the Covenanters unmoveable resolution, that although the Assembly should be continued, and all things which they desired (even to their own wishes) should be granted and effected, yet that the quietnesse and peace of that Kingdome should be never a whit the more settled or established, but that they were determined to chuse at this assembly certain Committees, who, under the name of Commissioners from the generall Assembly, should keep up their Tables, and bee chosen and continued from one Assembly to another, and so hold on the same rebellious courses which they have held ever since the first erection of their Tables, to the utter overthrow of Our royall Authoritie, and the authoritie of the Lords of Our Councell, and Lords of Our Session under Us: and Our Commissioner well weighing Our instructions, according to which hee was to carry himselfe in this Assembly, if hee should find that these mischiefes and courses of injustice could not bee stopped, resolved the next day (according to Our speciall commandment) in Our name, and by Our authoritie to dissolve that Assembly, whose aime was onelyonly to robbe Us of Our Soveraigne power, and to put it in the hands of their Commissioners.
According to which resolution Our Commissioner the next day, being Wednesday the 28. of November, went betimes in the morning to the Church, and Our Councell (having warning over night) met him in the Chapter-house, where they sate in consultation before they went to the Assembly: He did then impart to them the resolution he had to dissolve the Assembly, and did aske their advice for the manner of doing it: after hearing each of their advice severally, he was confirmed in his resolution. The reason why Our Commissioner held the Councell in that place, was, because some of Our Councell, who were present, should have no time to communicate his resolution to the Covenanters, nor to consult with them about the hindering it; the Assembly being fully set before the Councell came out, so that what had passed there, could not be communicated to them.
The first thing propounded there by the Moderatour that day, was this: A day or two before, there were brought into the Assembly three or foure great volumes by their new Clerke, which he alledged were the Acts of the generall Assembly from the very first reformation of that Church, which, by the speciall providence of God, and his own carefull industry, had been recovered, else they had been lost for ever, to the invaluable losse of the puritie of the Religion and Discipline established amongst them; for they had been throwne by for many yeeres, untill he by some strange accident had light upon them: after which speech of the Clerke, the Moderatour had desired them to chuse a Committee to peruse these Bookes, and to report to the Assembly whether they conceived them to bee the true and authenticall Acts of the generall Assemblies of the Church of Scotland: The day before this, these Committees had made their report that they had perused them, and had found them to bee true and authenticall Records, and delivered in writing some reasons of this their opinion; which made the impartiall auditors wonder how in two daies men could peruse, and make a judgement of such volumes, which other men (who tooke themselves to be no fooles) thought could hardly be done in one yeere: but that was all one, the Moderatour this day put it to the question and voices, Whether they would allow the copies of those Bookes of Assembly (which the Committees the day before had reported to bee good and faithfull copies) to bee reputed ever hereafter for the authenticall Records and Registers of the Church of Scotland: Our Commissioner prayed them to forbeare doing any thing suddenly in a businesse of so great importance, that nothing, especially if it were doubtfull, could bee made a publique Record of any Judicatorie which was to oblige Our subjects, unlesse We first by Our Advocate and learned Councell were satisfied of the authenticall authoritie of that Record; and therefore wished them to stay untill that course might bee taken, and before that time not to put it to voices: But all in vaine, for presently they of the Assembly (without one contrarie voice) concluded these Bookes to be authenticall Registers, and so to bee held and reputed for ever, without knowing what was in them: They were foure Bookes, and very large, and confessed not to be the Originals, but copies. Our Commissioner then remembring that at Our Palace at Holy-rood-house hee was denied the sight of the Bookes of the Assembly (the Covenanters having threatned the former Clerke of the Assembly, if hee should let Our Commissioner have the perusall of them) begun now to thinke, that there might be stuffe enough in them against Our Regall authoritie, and perhaps a great deale of it of their own devising; which caused Our Commissioner to enter into Our Clerke of Registers hands a solemn Protestation against the validitie of these Records, and against any of Our subjects being obliged by them, untill such time as they should be perused and allowed by such as We should authorize by Commission for that purpose.
Next, the Moderatour desired the Clerke to reade certaine answers, which upon the sudden had been drawne up (as he said) by certaine Brethren to the reasons contained in the Bishops Declinator which had been read the day before: And indeed, so soone as they were heard, it was easily beleeved that they were drawne up upon a sudden, without either feare or wit, being very poore and silly, stuffed full of cytations out of their own bookes of Discipline, which did allow lay-Elders; and by these testimonies concluded the exception of the Bishops against Lay-Elders, & Ministers, Commissioners chosen by them for having voice in the Assembly, to bee invalid; which made some admire by what consequence it could be inferred, that because there had been Lay-Elders in particular Church-Sessions, nay and perhaps in Presbyteries, that therefore these Lay-Elders either had, or must now have voices in the generall Assembly, or in chusing the Ministers Commissioners to it: Yet the Moderatour caused another paper to bee read in defence of Lay-Elders, of the very same tedious stuffe with the former: And, to magnifie those Bookes of Discipline, so often cyted in both these papers, the Moderatour desired the whole Assembly to heare himself reade a long Latine testimonie, given in the Syntagma of the confessions of the Reformed Churches, to the puritie of the discipline of the Church of Scotland. Our Commissioner called for the Book, & desired to see what he had read, and found it to be a private testimonie of one unknowne, inserted by the Printer or setter out of that Syntagma, to make it sell the better, because it had some new thing in it; which made a good many laugh at that so much magnified testimonie. Then the Moderator, to take away that exception in the Bishops Declinator, that the Assembly was a declared partie (and therefore could not be their Judge) alledged, that the Remonstrants had made the same objection against the Synod of Dort, but that it was repelled by all the Divines there present, and the invaliditie of that exception declared by none better then by the Divines of great Britaine, whose judgement against that exception he then out of the publique Acts of that Synod did reade: Our Commissioner told the Moderatour, that he should have done well to have translated into Scottish that passage which he last read, and the former out of the Syntagma, that so many of the Lay-Elders, who were to judge of the fitnesse of these cytations, might understand him and them; which the Moderatour passed over with a smile. ONE who stood by Our Commissioner, and had been present at the Synod of Dort, asked leave first of Our Commissioner, and then of the Moderatour to speake, which being granted him by both, hee answered the Moderatours answer to the Bishops objection, thus: That the Bishops exception against them of the Assembly, as pars adversa, differed from that of the Remonstrants against the Synod of Dort two waies: First, in regard of the matter of it: For the Synod consisting of Divines, & the matters controverted being points of Divinitie (and by some men thought to bee fundamentall points of faith, though they were not so) in which Schollers use not to be neutrall, it was impossible for the Remonstrants to find Divines to be their Judges, if they would except against such Divines as had declared themselves to bee of the one opinion or the other: But it was not so with Episcopacie in the judgement of the members of this Assembly; for they could not hold the allowing or rejecting of Episcopacie to bee a point of doctrine, because points of doctrine are not alterable; but the Church of Scotland in her positive confession, Article 21. did hold Church policie or government alterable at the will of the Church; which opinion, whether he did allow or not, hee was not then and there to declare: but sure in such points, which they themselves held alterable and indifferent at the will of the Church, being no points of doctrine, there was no necessitie of pre-declaring their judgement, especially after they meant to bee Judges: Nay, there was a necessitie of not pre-declaring their judgement against Episcopall government, considering it stood now in force by Acts both of Church and Parliament; and therefore that the declaration of their judgement against it, (even since they intended to be Judges of it, but before they were actually so) did barre them from being Judges of it at all. But secondly, and that upon which he principally insisted, was this: That the Bishops case in their exception against this Assembly, differed from that of the Remonstrants against the other Synod, in the manner of the members of that Synods pre-declaration, and of the members of this Assemblies pre-declaration. Many of the members of that Synod had pre-declared themselves by discoursing, writing, preaching, &c. but not by any judiciall Act, nor by any Act equivalent to a judiciall Act, such as swearing against the other tenet, binding themselves by Oathes, Covenants, Combinations, Confederacies, Associations against the abetters of it; all which being Acts analogicall to judiciall Acts, and being done by the members of this Assembly against the Bishops, absolutely barred them from being Judges in the question of these Bishops persons or calling. Some answer was made to this by the Moderatour and others, which required no reply; and therefore received none, that which was answered being no way against that which had been delivered: For the Moderatour conceiving that hee who spake had affirmed that the five Articles treated of at the Synod of Dort, had been fundamentall points of faith (of which opinion the speaker never was, nor is) fell upon a discourse of fundamentall and not fundamentall points of faith; affirming that the Synod of Dort had never determined the five Articles to bee fundamentall points of faith, which the former speaker knew very well to bee true: And it made many auditors thinke, that the Moderatour did deliver this onelyonly because he would have something to say; for they did conceive that he had been a man so rigid in these tenets, that hee had held them to bee fundamentall points of faith: But whether hee did or not, there were many Ministers members of the Assembly, who did hold them to bee fundamentall points, & most unchristianly and uncharitably had preached, that the Remonstrants tenets did destroy the very foundation of faith; and whosoever sided with them in the five Articles, could not possibly bee saved. But now the other exception laid by him that spake, and in which hee conceived the strength of his speech principally to lie, viz. That by their swearing, and combining by a Covenant against the Bishops (which was a plain pre-judging of them) they had barred themselves from being their Judges; the Moderatour was pleased to make no answer at all, though of all that was spoken it most principally required one. Another Minister, one of the gravest and learnedest in the Assembly, did conceive that he which spake had affirmed, that Councels and Synods were onelyonly Judges of points of faith and doctrine, but not of government or other matters; and instanced in Novatus and Donatus, who by Councels and Synods had beene censured in points of schisme; which no man ever denyed, nor ever came within the compasse of the thoughts or words of him that spake. Here a Lay-Elder, who was a Lord, conceived that he who spake had said something insinuating that Lay-Elders had given voyces in some Councels; Thereupon the person that spake, unwilling to let that passe, asked leave to tell his Lordship that he was mistaken, & that if Our Commissioner and the Assemblie would give him leave, he would maintaine it against any man in the Assembly, that neither the name nor thing of a Lay-Elder, was ever knowne to any generall or Provinciall Councell; nay, not to any particular Church in the whole Christian world, before Calvins dayes. To this no replie was made, save onelyonly by the Moderatour, who first said that it would be thought a strange thing in England, if any of this Assemblie should stand up in the Convocation house, and speake against their Church government: to which was answered by him that spake, That he neither did speake, nor would have spoken there, without leave asked and obtained; nor would he have asked leave if it had not been to have cleared a passage of the Synod of Dort urged by the Moderatour, and in which he himselfe was interessed. And it seemes here the Moderatour was brought very low, by telling the partie that his father while he lived was of another opinion: to which the other answered, That that was a weake reason; for there were some members of the Assembly then sitting, whose Fathers had beene Papists: And he who spake did verie much wonder that the Moderatour should thinke it strange for him to differ from his Father in his judgement of these points of Ecclesiasticall government; for he did not apprehend it so great a matter for any man to differ from his Father in judgment, as to differ from himselfe: and hee was sure that the Moderatour knew well enough that many members of the Assembly, who were now fiercest against Episcopall government, within these few yeeres had been as earnest maintainers of it as any, & more ambitious and earnest suitors for Bishopricks then any other. The Moderatour at last cut off all further contestation about these Lay-Elders, by affirming that the state of the question as it stood before them, was not whether Lay-Elders had ever beene received in other Churches, but whether their office and place in the Assembly was agreeable with the constitutions of the Church of Scotland; and so no more was spoke of it.
The Moderatour from that speech which was made for justifying the Bishops exception against the competencie of their Judges, viz. the Assembly, because the members of it had declared themselves parties, tooke occasion to speak thus to the Assembly: Since we see both the competencie and constitution of this Judicatorie and Assembly is thus openly impugned, it is high time to cleare this point, of which none can bee Judge but the Assembly it selfe, and therefore I will presently put it to voyces, Whether this Assemblie be the lawfull and competent Judge of the Libell against the Bishops, notwithstanding the reasons contained in their Declinator.
This gave our Commissioner the occasion (which hee neglected not) to do and declare that which by Our speciall commandement he had resolved on; for he presently made a speech of a competent length, the summe whereof was this: I should perhaps have continued a little longer with you, if you had not falne upon a point which doth inforce my deserting you: You are now about to settle the lawfulnesse of this Judicatorie, and the competencie of it against the Bishops, whom you have cyted hither; neither of which I can allow, if I shall discharge either my duty towards God, or loyaltie towards my gracious and just Master. This is a day to me both of gladness and sadnesse; Gladnesse in that I have both seene this Assemblie meet, which his Majesties subjects have been made beleeve was never intented by Him, and in that I shall now in his Majesties name make good unto you all his most gracious offers in his last Royall Proclamation, which likewise his Majesties subjects were made beleeve would never be performed by Him: Of Sadnesse, in that you who have called so much for a free Generall Assembly, having one most free, in his Majesties intentions, granted you, have so handled and marred the Master, that there is not the least shadow of freedome to be discerned in this your meeting: for the former, which is the discharge and performance of your Soveraignes gracious promises, let this paper, which I deliver to the Clerke to be read, witnesse it to you all, which I am sure you cannot chuse but receive with all thankfulnesse and dutifull acknowledgement of his Majesties pietie, goodnesse, and clemencie, unlesse all Religion and goodnesse be quite banished out of this Land: Here the Clerke publiquely read the paper, which followeth.